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Chapter 6: Radiation

6.1 Introduction to Radiation

Any matter with temperature above absolute zero (0 K) emits electromagnetic radiation. In a simplified
picture, radiation comes from the constantly changing electromagnetic fields of the oscillating atoms.
Electromagnetic radiation can be visualized as waves traveling at the speed of light. The two prominent
characters of the wave are the wavelength (λ) and frequency (ν). The wavelength is the distance between
crest to crest on the wave. The frequency is related to wavelength by the following:

(Eq. 6.1)

where c is the speed of light, approximately equal to 3×108 m/s in vacuum. The wavelength is measured in
units of length, and the frequency is given in cycles per second (hertz, Hz).

The amount of radiation emitted by a body depends on its temperature, and is proportional to T4. This
relation shows that as the temperature of the object increases, the amount of radiation emitted increases very
rapidly. The emitted radiation will travel at the speed of light until it is absorbed by another body. The
absorbing medium can be gas, liquid, or solid. Radiation does not require a medium to pass through. This is
demonstrated by solar radiation which pass through interplanetary space to reach the earth.

6.2 Electromagnetic Spectrum

Electromagnetic radiation is categorized into types by their

wavelengths. The types of radiation and the respective
wavelength ranges are shown in Figure 6.1. Radiation
with shorter wavelengths are more energetic, evident by
the harmful gamma and x-rays on the shorter end of the
spectrum. Radio waves, which are used to carry radio and
TV signals, are much less energetic; however, they can
pass through walls with no difficulty due to their long
wavelengths.

The type of radiation emitted by a body depends on its

temperature. In general, the hotter the object is, the
shorter the wavelengths of emitted radiation, and the
greater the amount. Most of the radiation we see from a
cooking standpoint is in the infrared range (a 500 K body,
for example, emits the most radiation at ~2×10-5 m). A
much hotter body, such as the sun (~5800 K), emits the
most radiation in the visible range.

The total energy emitted by a body, regardless of the Figure 6.1 The electromagnetic spectrum
wavelengths, is given by:

(Eq. 6.2)

where ε is the emissivity of the body, A is the surface area, T is the temperature, and σ is the Stefan-
Boltzmann constant, equal to 5.67×10-8 W/m2K4. Emissivity is a material property, ranging from 0 to 1,
which measures how much energy a surface can emit with respect to an ideal emitter (ε = 1) at the same

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temperature.

6.3 Radiative Properties

When radiation strikes a surface, a portion of it is reflected, and the rest

enters the surface. Of the portion that enters the surface, some are
absorbed by the material, and the remaining radiation is transmitted
through. This is shown in Figure 6.2.

The ratio of reflected energy to the incident energy is called reflectivity,

ρ. Similarly, transmissivity (τ) and absorptivity (α) are defined as the
fraction of the incident energy that is transmitted through or absorbed by
the object, respectively. The three radiative properties all have values
between zero and 1. Furthermore, since the reflected, transmitted, and
Figure 6.2 Radiative interaction
absorbed radiation must add up to equal the incident energy, the
at a surface
following can be said about the three properties:

α+ρ+τ =1 (Eq. 6.3)

Generally, an object with high reflectivity has low absorptivity and emissivity. Those with low reflectivities
tend to have high absorptivities and emissivities.

6.4 Radiative Heat Transfer

Consider the heat transfer between two surfaces, as shown in Figure

6.3. What is the rate of heat transfer into Surface B? To find this, we
will first look at the emission from A to B. Surface A emits radiation as
described in Eqn. 6.2:

(Eq. 6.4)

This radiation is emitted in all directions, and only a fraction of it will

actually strike Surface B. This fraction is called the shape factor, F. The
amount of radiation striking Surface B is therefore:
Figure 6.3 Radiation exchange
(Eq. 6.5) between two surfaces

The only portion of the incident radiation contributing to heating Surface B is the absorbed portion, given by
the absorptivity αB:

(Eq. 6.6)

Equation 6.6 is the amount of radiation going into Surface B from Surface A. To find the net heat transfer
rate at B, we must now subtract the amount of radiation emitted by B:

(Eq. 6.7)

The net radiative heat transfer rate at Surface B is Eqn. 6.6 minus Eqn. 6.7:

(Eq. 6.8)

6.5 Shape Factors

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Shape factor, F, is a geometrical factor which is determined by the

shapes and relative locations of two surfaces. Figure 6.4 illustrates this
for a simple case of cylindrical source and planar surface. Both the
cylinder and the plate are infinite in length. In this case, it is easy to see
that the shape factor is reduced as the distance between the source and
plane increases. The shape factor for this simple geometry is simply the
cone angle (θ) divided by 2π.

Shape factors for other simple geometries are available in heat transfer
texts. However, for more complicated geometries, the following two
rules must be applied to find shape factors based on simple geometries.

The first is the summation rule. This rule says that the shape factor from
a surface (1) to another (2) can be expressed as a sum of the shape
factors from (1) to (2a), and (1) to (2b). Using this rule allows you to
break up complicated geometry into smaller pieces for which the
individual shape factors can be found.
Figure 6.4 Effect of distance on the
The second rule is the reciprocity rule, which relates the shape factors shape factor
from (1) to (2) and that from (2) to (1) as follows:

(Eq. 6.9)

Thus, if the shape factor from (1) to (2) is known, then the shape factor
from (2) to (1) can be found by:

Figure 6.5 Summation rule

(Eq. 6.10)

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